CATHERINE CARMICHAEL

1 March 1988 - 26 March 1988Opening Reception 1 March 1988 8pm

Catherine Carmichael

Catherine Carmichael’s solo exhibition at Mercer Union will include two freestanding mixed-media sculptures and one large-scale wall relief. Consisting of found objects and discarded building materials, Carmichael’s work on exhibition reveals an approach to sculpture which is both additive and intuitive. Themes concerned with the processes of growth, transformation and decay are intrinsic to her work and inform her choice and use of these materials.

Focusing upon the body and human movement, Carmichael describes the relationship between her present sculpture and her earlier performance work (1980-1986):

Because I have danced alot, I am conscious of my physical self in the world. I feel like I am really grounded, standing on two feet, a certain size and a certain weight. I’m aware of it when I’m working. In that way it feels like a really huge influence. If I’m working on something that feels like a leg, it takes weight in my head. Through direct experience with my own body, I understand it in a way that transfers into the piece.

Catherine Carmichael currently resides in Flesherton, Ontario. Since 1977, the artist’s work has been presented in solo and group exhibitions in Owen Sound, Durham, St. Catharines, Whitby, and London, Ontario, as well as Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, and New York City. Catherine Carmichael has also presented performances in Vancouver, Toronto, Ottawa, and Guelph.

Accompanying the exhibition will be an interview with the artist, published by Mercer Union.